Prescription Cost Analysis

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The Prescription Cost Analysis shows details of the number of items and the gross ingredient cost (GIC) of all NHS prescriptions dispensed in the community in Scotland. These prescriptions are dispensed by community pharmacies, dispensing doctors and a small number of specialist appliance suppliers and stoma providers. GPs write the vast majority of these prescriptions, with the remainder written by other authorised prescribers such as nurses and dentists. Also included are prescriptions written in hospitals that are dispensed in the community, but prescriptions dispensed within hospitals are not included.

The items dispensed are listed alphabetically within chemical entity (for drugs) by British National Formulary (BNF) therapeutic class. Statistics on the top 10 drugs dispensed in Scotland by volume and cost and the generic rate of prescribing by the NHS Board the prescription was written in are also presented.

This report and accompanying tables are published annually in June. The publication summary includes key points from the data tables and some key background information. The full publication report includes key points and further commentary on the data, more detailed background information, and meta-data.

The Prescription Cost analysis tables include data for a financial year by BNF Chapter and Sub-section, Drug/Device Name and Individual Preparation for Scotland. This includes Number of dispensed items, Gross Ingredient Cost and cost per item. The 2016 file contains the data for 2015/16.

The Generic Drugs tables include data on prescribing of generic drugs. They include at least ten years trend data at Scotland level, and comparison over two years at NHS Board level. The 2016 file contains data up to 2015/16.

The Top Ten tables present the top ten drugs for the most recent financial year. The data is presented by number of items dispensed and by Gross Ingredient Cost. The 2016 tables contain data for 2015/16.

The Top Ten Movers table presents the top ten drug/device increases and decreases for the most recent financial year. The data is presented by number of items dispensed and by Gross Ingredient Cost. The 2016 tables contain data for 2015/16.

The Summary Statistics tables include summary data on the volume and the net cost of prescriptions dispensed in Scotland. The net cost is the cost to the Scottish Government, which is the Gross Ingredient Cost plus Dispensing fees and allowances, less any patient charges. The Scotland tables include a ten year trend at Scotland level, and data for the most recent financial year at NHS board level. The NHS board tables include the NHS board level data for the past ten years. The 2015 tables include data up to 2014/15. From 2015/16 onwards the Summary Statistics data tables previously contained in the PCA publication has been moved into the Remuneration publication.

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